Combined spring clip and snubber



COMBINED SPRING CLIP AND SNUBBER Filed April 7, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l \\\\\\\\\\\\&\\\\\\\\\ m; 5-

WILLIAM 2122x171; ELMER BELL -7 YM 5. M

ATTO RN EY y 3 w. BLACKMORE ET AL 1,367,203

I COMBINED SPRING CLIP AND SNUBBER I Filed April 7, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS WILLIAM .Bgncxnoxz. BY [LMBR BILL ATTORN EY Patented I July 12, 1932 UNETED STATES PATENT-carrot l WILLIAM BLAC'KMORE Ase ELMER- BELL; or snenon, PENNSYLVANIA; Assmnons on one-rerun T WILLIAM c; ennomvronn, or cnsvsnnnn, OHIO COMBINED SPRING Application filed April 7',

The present invention'relates to a combined spring clip and shock absorber for the springs of motor vehicles.

In the manufacture of automobile springs,

it is the usual practice to build the springs with a flexibility such as to provide easy riding qualities on reasonably smooth roads and pavements.

When. a vehicle spring is provided with 1c the flexibility necessary for easy riding on reasonably smooth roads, the springs will have an excessive rebound when the automobile is driven over rough roads, which results in considerable discomfort of passengers.

To overcome this difiiculty, thejuse of shock absorbing devices has become quite. general. Theshock absorbing devices in most general use are quite expensive, costing several times as much as the vehicle springs to which they as are attached. i r

The present invention has for its object to provide a clip for motor vehicle springs which is adapted to replace the usual clip employed for holding the'leavesof the spring against relative lateral movements, and which also serves as an efficient snubber or shock-absorber, whereby thedesired easy riding-qualities both on smooth and rough roads may be built intothe spring with little, if any, in-

crease in the cost of manufacture of the springs.

In Patent No. 1,628,386, granted May 10, 1927,. there "is disclosed a shock absorber which utilizes interleaf friction to. absorb shocks and restrain excessive flexing of the springs. resilient steel clip attached to the spring which is provided with a cam and actuating lever for applying a gradually increasing 4% pressure to the leaves of the spring. during flexing movements thereof. In this patent, there is also disclosed a: modification in which a resilient steelclip is provided with means for maintaining the constant pressure on'the leaves ofthe spring to increase the interleaf friction and prevent excessive flexing of the.

spring. The latter device is effective on rough roads, but increases the stiffness of the springs-to an extent such that they do. not 59 have thesmooth action desirable for absorb- This shock absorber consists of a our AND- sn unnm I 1930. seriaifuoeeaansz.

ing slight shocks such as occur in driving Orr-boulevards.- r k i The device of. the present invention is an improvement on the invention disclosed the patent, providing a shock absorber in the form of aresilient steel clip which may serve the purpose. of the usual spring clip. and

which als o'acts asashock absorber beingde signed to apply a uniformly increasing pressure to the leaves off the spring'during, flexing movements thereof, no mechanically actuated pressure applying device. suchas shown in the. patent being. required:

A further. object of the finventionis. to provides shoclcabsorbing' device in the form of a resilient steel clip whichlengages the spring in such. manner that it is positively held, against "creeping movement {on the spr ng. A. further: object .of' the invention,:is,:to provide a combined. spring clip and ShQCk absorber whichis inexpensive tomanufacture and which can be quickly and easily ap;

plied to the portion ofthe. springto .which the leaf retaining clip is ordinarily applied. WVith the above. andother objectsinview, the'invention. may be said to. comprise. the device as. illustrated in-the accompanying drawings hereinafter described and. particularly set forth in theappended claims, .together. with such variations and modifications thereof as willbeapparentto one skilled in the art to which the inventionappertains.

Reference; should. be hadto the accompanying drawings" forming a part ofthisspeci- .ficationin-Which: i

Figure-1- is afragmentarysideelevation showing vehicle: spring with the device of the-present inventioniapplied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a section taken oni tlie'liheiindicated at.22 in.F-ig.;1. 3

Fig. 8"is. a section talien ou the lineindi catedat 8+3 in Fig. 2.

Fig. dis a bottom-planview of theclip'ap- Fig. 7 is a bottom plan view of the clip shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a diagrammatic view on an enlarged scale illustrating the operation of the device.

In Fig. 1 of the drawings, thecombined spring 'clip and shock absorberof the present invention is shown applied to an automobile spring 1, which is attached at itscenter to an axle 2and at its rear end to a side rail 3 of the automobile frame.

Thedevice of the present-invention is a U-shaped clip 4 formed of spring steel and adapted to be secured upon an automobile spring. The'U-shaped clip 4 has atop arm 5 which is adapted to extend across the top leaf of thespring, the arm 5 being provided at its outer end with a short downturned flan'ge 6.v The clip 4; has a base portion 7, .26

which connects the top arm 5 of the clip with a' bottom arm 8 which underlies the bottom V leafof the spring The top arm 5 of the clip has a narrow central bearing portion 5 which; is flat and engagesthe top face of the top leaf of the spring, the side portions 10 of the top aim being inclined upwardly away from the central bearing portion 9 so that the arm 5 has the bottom arm 8 being inclined downwardly.

ing projection 11.

a relatively narrow bearing across the. top face of the spring.

The bottom arm 8 is provided with an integral bearing projection or dowel 11 which may be pressed up from the body of the metal and which is'adapted to engage in a central hole 12 in the bottom leaf13 of the spring which may be a rivet hole such as provided for theusual spring clip, side'portions 14 of from the central dowel 11, so that the arm 8 is free to rocklaterally on the central bear- .The resilient steel clip dis soconstructed that 1 when placed on the spring, the arms and 8 ually increasing pressure to the leaves of the spring, causing the interleaf friction to be gradually increased, and thereby imposing 'an'increasing resistance to flexing movement and'limiting the extent of flexing movement in both directions and quickly stopping the .oscillating movements of the spring. I

The clip shown in Figs. 1 to 4 can be applied to the spring by slipping the clip side wise onto the. spring beyond theend of the leaf13, which is to be engaged by the bot-V tom arm 8 and thendriving the clip with a hammer over the end of'the leaf 13 until the dowell 11 snaps into the rivet hole 12.-

the end of the leaf13 so that the clip may be readily driven into place.

Figs.:5 to 7 of the drawings show a modified form of the invention in which a U- shaped resilient steel clip 20 is provided with i a top. arm 21 and short flange 22 substantially identical with the top ar1n'5 and flange The flaring side portions and 14: ofjthe arms 5 and 8 serve to guide the clip up over 6 of the clip above described, the arm 21 d V having a narrow central bearingportion 23 and inclined side portions 24 on opposite sides of the centralbearing portion. The clip has a base portion 25 connecting the top arm 21 with the bottom arm 26 which extends underneath the bottom of'the spring 1. In this modification, the bottom arm 26 is spaced below the bottomjof the spring 1 and is provided with an aperture 27 which is centrally disposed with respect to the bearing: portion 23and adapted to lie 'beneath the center line of the spring 1. The

aperture 27 receives an adjustable pin 28 which is externally threadedand is held in adjusted position in the arm26 by means of nuts 29 and 30 threaded on the pin, one above and the other below the arm 26, a spring washer '31 being interposed between the lowernut 30 and the bottom of the arm 26. The

nuts 29 and 30 and washer 31serve to posi tively lock the bearing pin 28 in adjusted position in the arm 26 and the upper end of the pin 28'is provided with a round end 7 32 which'is adapted to engage in the rivet hole 12-of the bottom leaf 13 of the spring.

'By adjusting the bearing pin 28, the arms 21 and 26 of the resilient clip may be forced outwardly from their normal position sufficientlyito cause them to impose thedesired initial pressure on the leaves 'of the spring. The shock absorbingaction -of the clip 'is illustrated in Fig. 8 of the drawings in which a line 0 indicates the normal line of pressure between the arms of the clip. Flexing of the spring causes the leaves :of the spring to have longitudinal slidlng movement'one upon the other, line b.b indicat-. ing a shifted position of the center line of the hole 12. i This shifting of the leaf 13 r causeslthe bearing pin 28 to beshifted with the hole 12 in which it bears and this lateral movement of the lower arm of the clip causes theupper arm 21 to rock about an eidge 33 of its central bearing portion23as a fulcrum, shifting'the center line of the clip from the vertical position 'a a'to an inclined.

position indicated by the line 00. The rocking of the clip about the fulcrum 33 causesa spreading of theresilient armsvof the clip which is indicated by the difference in the length of lines d d and ec.'

It will thus be apparent thata flexing movementof the spring in either direction 'fromaneutral position 1 causes a gradually increasing pressure to beeXertedby,-the spring clip onthe leaves of thespr-ing which results in agradually'increa'sing resistance to flexing movement. It will benoted that the pines has a-rocking 'mov'ement in the aperture'1-2, causing the axis thereof to=be shifted away from the center' of the, hole when. the clip is tilted so [that-the actual lateral movement of the; pin is less than the sliding movement of the leaf 13. The provision of-a narrow central bearingfor the top arm of the clip causes the pressure immediately after a flexing movement of the spring is started to be exerted along the fulcrum line 33 sothat the high-pressure exertedon a very limited area" al'ongthis line offers great resistance" to sliding movement of the upper armof the clip onthe top leaf of the sprlng'and effectually preventsany relatively sliding movement between fthe spring and clip and, sinc e the bottom arm of the clip is anchored by means'of the hearing pinor dowel in the hole 12,-the arms. of the clip will'be moved apart and the pressure exerted by the arms will be increased proportionally to the relative sliding movement of the leaves of the spring. i i v A clip constructed in accordance with-the present invention may be set to apply the desired pressure to-the springs inth'e normal position, and, upon deflection of'the spring, there will bea substantially uniform increase in pressure during the flexing movement of the springs. i i In testing the shock absorbing clipsof the present invention, it has been found that the increase in pressure is very nearly uniform and proportional to the amount of slip between the leaves-of' the spring. In one instance it was found that, with the clip set to exert an initial pressure of approximately 200 lbs, an additional pressure of 20 lbs. was

applied for each .001 inch the spaced arms of clip were moved apart. With a deflection between the spaced arms of .025, the increased load equaled 500 lbs, which, plus the 200 initial pressure brought the total clamping pressure up to 700 lbs, which is sufficient to verv effectively control the spring recoil.

It isgenerally conceded to be desirable that a shock absorber should have a variable action and absorb the most energy near the point of maximum travel and should absorb the least energy at approximately mid-travel, i. e., the position which the springs normally occupy under the superposed load. The clip of the present invention meets these conditions very effectively, rocking in one direction above the mid-point and in the opposite direction below the mid-point so that on both the initial impact and on the recoil, the

flexing movement of the springis effectively checked.

The device of the present invention serves every purpose of the retaining clip ordinathereto, said 3 2. The combination with rily employed. a It comprises fewer parts than the clip ordinarily used and can be manufactured at a cost but little, if any, higher than springs.

shock absorbing devices on automobile Furthermore, it is to be understood that thejparticular form of'apparatus shown and 3 described, and the particularprocedure set forth, are presented for purposes of explanation and illustration and that various modifications of said apparatus and procedure can be made'without departing from our invention asdefined in the appended claims.

What we claim is:

'1. The combination with a spring composed of superposed leaves, of a shock absorber comprising 'a. resilient steel clip hav ingspaced arms adapted to receive a plurality of superposed leaves of the spring between them and to clampsaid leaves with spring pressure, one of said arms having a flatbearlng portion oflesswidth than the arm, said bearing portion of the arm extending longitu'dinally and engaging the leaf on one face of the spring, the other arm having abear ing projection opposite said flat bearing portion and centrally disposed with respect rojection having rockingengagement wit the leaf ontheface of the spring opposite that engaged by the fiat bear ing portion. 1

posed of superposed leaves, of a shock absorber comprising a'resilient steel clip havmg spaced arms adapted to receive a plurality of superposed leaves of the spring between them and to clamp said leaves with spring pressure, one of said arms having a flat beazingportiononits inner face of less width. than the arm, said bearing portion extending longitud nally of the arm, said .arm having sidb portlons inclined outwardly with respect to the bearing portion to provide angular bearing edges; alongopposite sides ofjsaidbea-ringportion, the other of said arms having abearing projectionopposite said flatbearingportion and centrally disposed with respect thereto, said flat bearing portion and bearing projection engaging the leaves on opposite faces of the spring, and

arms and leaves. 7 l 3. The combination with a spring composed of superposed'leavesand havln g a leaf providing rocking engagement between said on one face thereof 'provided with a recess,

of a shock absorber comprising a resilient steelclip having spaced arms adapted to rea springfcomuse ceive a plurality ofsuperposed leaves of the spring between them and .to clamp said leaves with spring pressure, one of said arms having a bearingprojectlon 1n rockmg engagement with the sprlngln said'recess, the other of said arms having a flat bearing portion of less width than the arm engageable across the face ofthe spring opposite said recess, said narrow bearing portion providing fulcrums at its opposite edgesabout which said "cliprocks upon relative'longitudinal sliding movements of the leaves of the'spring.

L. The combination with a spring composed of superposed leaves and having a leaf on one face thereof provided with a recess of a shock absorber comprising a resilient steel clip having spaced arms adapted to receive a pluralityof superposed leaves of the spring between'them and to clamp' said leaves with spring pressure, one of said arms having a bearing projection in rocking en'- gagement with the spring in said recess, the other of said arms having a'flat bearing portion of less width than the arm extending longitudinally thereof and engaging the spring across the face thereof opposite said 'r'ecess, said.arm having side portions inr clined outwardly with respect to said bearing portion and providing fulcrums at the edges of said bearing portionong opposite sides of the center plane of the clip about which the 'clipis rocked upon relative longitudinal sliding movements of the leaves of the spring. 5. A combined spring "clip and "shock absorber for leaf springs comprising a resilient steel clipof U-shape have spacedarms adapt- 7 ed to receive a plurality of the superposed leaves of the spring between them and to clampsaid leaves with spring pressure to in crease the friction between said leaves, said cliphaving a base portion connecting said arms and engageable with one side 'ofthe s rin and one of said arms havin a fian e y b b engageable with the opposite side of the spring to hold the leaves of the spring against relative lateral movements.

6. A combined springclip and shock absorber for leaf springs comprising a resilient steel clip' of U-shape havingspaced arms adapted to receive a plurality ofthe superposed leaves of the spring between them and to clamp saidleave's with spring pressure to increase the friction between said; leaves, the upper of said arms having a depending flange at its outerend engageable with one apart'by relative-sliding movements of the leaves to increase the'spring pressure exerted by the clip on the'leaves.

8. A combined-spring clip and shock absorber for leaf springs comprising a r silient steel clip, of U-shape' having spaced arms adapted toreceivea plurality of the superposed leaves ofthe spring between them and to clamp saidleaves with spring pressure to increase the friction between said-i leaves, said clip having a base portion connecting said arms and engageable withone side of the spring and one of said arms having a flange engageable with, the opposite side ,of the spring to hold theleavesof the spring against relatlve lateral movements, one of said arms having a narrow'flat bearing portion extending longitudinally thereof and engageable with the face of the adjacent leaf of the sprlng, theother of said arms havin'gabearing projection centrally disposed with respect to said flat bearing portion and 'engageable with the opposite leaf of the spring. "In testimony whereof we affix ourosignatures. .7 a i Y 7 .7 WILLIAM BLACKMOBE-f side of the spring, said clip having a base I portlon connecting said arms and engageable with the opposite side of the spring, whereby the leaves of the spring are heldagainst relabase portion; 7

7. A combined spring clip and shockabsorber for leaf springs comprising a resilient steel clip of vU-shape having spaced arms adapted to receive a plurality of the supertive lateral movementsby said flange and 

